Charles L. Ponce de Leon

That's the Way It Is: A History of Television News in America Charles L. Ponce de Leon

Marc Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Review Quotes: "This is an important project. No one has written a serious history of American television news. We have some good case studies, and treatments of different moments in TV journalism, but no scholar has attempted the synthesis that Charles Ponce de Leon offers here."--James L. Baughman, University of WisconsinReview Quotes: "Charles Ponce de Leon has written a brisk and informative history of television news since its inception in the late 1940s, covering the more than six decades of TV news from Douglas Edwards to Diane Sawyer, from the "Camel News Caravan" to "Countdown with Keith Olbermann." The narrative moves quickly, yet pauses to offer extended discussions of such topics as the genesis of PBS, the establishment of CNN, the innovations of Roone Arledge at ABC, and the ways that local news helped to reshape the network evening newscasts."--Chester Pach, Ohio UniversityBiographical Note: Charles L. Ponce de Leon is associate professor of history and American Studies at California State University Long Beach. Table of Contents: Contents Acknowledgments Prologue Chapter One: Beginnings Chapter Two: The Voice of God Chapter Three: Public Alternatives Chapter Four: News You Can Use Chapter Five: Rebirth Chapter Six: The New Entertainment Chapter Seven: Fade to Black Notes IndexReview Quotes: "As television news becomes more partisan, more emotional, and leans more toward the trivial, the blame usually falls on venal media moguls and cynical journalists. "That's the Way It Is" reminds us that the structure of the competitive environment, government regulation, and most importantly the preferences of the audience have always shaped the news we see on TV. This is an important book because it reminds us that even if we don't like the picture, we are actually looking in a mirror."--Jack Fuller, former editor and publisher of the Chicago TribunePublisher Marketing: When critics decry the current state of our public discourse, one reliably easy target is television news. It's too dumbed-down, they say; it's no longer news but entertainment, celebrity-obsessed and vapid. The critics may be right. But, as Charles L. Ponce de Leon explains in "That's the Way It Is," TV news has "always" walked a fine line between hard news and fluff. The familiar story of decline fails to acknowledge real changes in the media and Americans' news-consuming habits, while also harking back to a golden age that, on closer examination, is revealed to be not so golden after all. Ponce de Leon traces the entire history of televised news, from the household names of the late 1940s and early '50s, like Eric Sevareid, Edward R. Murrow, and Walter Cronkite, through the rise of cable, the political power of Fox News, and the satirical punch of Colbert and Stewart. He shows us an industry forever in transition, where newsmagazines and celebrity profiles vie with political news and serious investigations. The need for ratings success--and the lighter, human interest stories that can help bring it--Ponce de Leon makes clear, has always sat uneasily alongside a real desire to report hard news. Highlighting the contradictions and paradoxes at the heart of TV news, and telling a story rich in familiar figures and fascinating anecdotes, "That's the Way It Is" will be the definitive account of how television has showed us our history as it happens. Review Citations:

Booklist 04/01/2015 pg. 5 (EAN 9780226472454, Hardcover)

Library Journal 05/01/2015 pg. 81 (EAN 9780226472454, Hardcover)

Contributor Bio:  Ponce De Leon, Charles L Charles L. Ponce de Leon is associate professor of history at Purchase College, State University of New York.